Stronger Families

Family is everything to me. I am blessed to have been married to my beautiful bride Sharon for nearly 47 years. I have two daughters, one son, and a daughter-in-law I refuse to call a daughter-in-law, because I consider her in every sense my daughter. They all live in Friendswood, and they all volunteer heavily in the community, working to influence the lives of children they encounter, trying to share the love and warmth of the Peck Family to anyone who needs it. I have four wonderful grandchildren, and I couldn’t wait to retire in Friendswood so I could proudly attend all their Little League Games, Upwards Games, school performances and ceremonies, and anything else where I can sit in the audience with the biggest smile on my face and tell anyone who will listen what a “Proud Opa” I am and how much I love and support them. They will have no bigger, no louder, and no more obnoxious cheerleader than me.

As the family patriarch, I feel a responsibility to live out our core values in everything I do, to instill confidence and bring peace to the family. The Peck family puts faith, family and country in the forefront as our core values in all that we do. We know that how we conduct our lives should be driven by love, kindness, compassion, respect and dignity for all. This is derived from our faith. When we look at what is going on around our nation and world, we can see so many hurting people and families. We see communities where violence reigns and people live in fear. More and more, I am grateful for the kind of community Friendswood is, and it is because of the caring spirits of the people and families here. I saw this clearly on display while working in the Recovery Center after Harvey.

There is much that can be said about a strong family nucleus and the positive impact it can have on our local communities, state and nation, making our world a better place to live in. I have strong feelings about what my role as parent should be and now as a grandfather. As a father, I believe my role began with helping my children establish a strong belief in God, supporting their academic advancement, participating in sports and school activities and just spending time with them. Knowing they could count on Mom and Dad and that we were involved and eager to participate helped guide them through the most difficult of times growing up. My career imposed hardships on my children, as is common in the engineering and construction industry, going from project to project across the nation and around the world. Our family compensated for being the new family and not knowing anyone in the community by becoming a stronger family unit, and we learned we could depend on each other. Today, as our family has grown, we continue to rally to each other’s needs, offering support and encouragement in this journey we call life. I am so encouraged to see this as a common thread in many Friendswood families and I am grateful to be part of such a community. We need to continue to be a part of our young people’s lives, Making Friendswood Stronger.

Country is also an important part of our lives. Where else in the world can we be afforded the opportunities present in our lives today? Nowhere else! With freedom and unlimited opportunities for all, our land is truly blessed. These things are possible only because of the courage and sacrifice of our Forefathers, with the blessing of God. The Friendswood City Charter Preamble says it best, “Good government can only be defined as that which is wholly and justly participated in by the people who are under its jurisdiction”. This has inspired me even more to wholeheartedly serve my fellow citizens of this great city. Good government at the local level is paramount to having good government at the state and federal level.

Involved together as a community of families, we can work to Make Friendswood Stronger. I will be honored to serve all the citizens of Friendswood. Remember, voting is a privilege and your right, so let Your Voice be heard. It is important to me, and it is important to the future of our community.

I welcome your response and discussion. I want to be Your Voice on the City Council and look forward to spending time hearing each of your concerns, allowing me to best represent your needs and interests in the city.